Alfred Lee Loomis' Influence on Changes in the University of California's Radiation Laboratory

Abstract

This paper examines the way the University of California's Radiation Laboratory, which was at the center of cyclotron development in the 1930s, became a center of military research for the development of new weapons. Focusing on Alfred Lee Loomis (1887-1975), the author elucidates the nature of his relationship with the Radiation Laboratory from late 1939 through the autumn of 1940. Three points are clarified: 1) Loomis' role in getting a 184-inch cyclotron planned: 2) the significance of his presence as Lawrence's "partner" in getting the actual construction started; and 3) Loomis' role in getting the Radiation Laboratory's microwave research incorporated into the National Defense Research Committee's military research.